Biography
Lt. Gary F. Cornelius retired from the Fairfax County (VA) Office of the Sheriff after 27 years of service from 1978-2005. His assignments at the 1,260 bed Fairfax County Adult Detention Center included confinement, classification, planning and policy development and community corrections. Prior to corrections, Gary was a police dispatcher, police officer and an officer in the U.S. Secret Service Uniformed Division. He is from Pittsburgh, PA and received his BA degree in Arts and Social Sciences with a Criminal Justice Focus in 1974 from Edinboro University of Pennsylvania (EUP). In 2005 EUP awarded Gary a Distinguished Alumni Award in Social Sciences.
Gary has been an in service training instructor in VA since 1985 and teaches subjects in basic jailer’s curriculum upon request. He has also instructed in corrections issues for the American Correctional Association (ACA), the American Jail Association (AJA), the Virginia Association of Regional Jails (VARJ) and the National Institute of Corrections (NIC). Since 1986, Gary has taught several corrections courses for George Mason University. In 1998, Gary was a consultant and project advisor for the National Institute of Justice Report Addressing Correctional Officer Stress: Issues and Practices.
Gary is an interim member on the Board of the International Association of Correctional Training Personnel (IACTP) representing local jails. He is also a member of ACA, AJA, and the American Association of Correctional and Forensic Psychology. In 2008, Gary co founded ETC, LLC, Education and Training in Corrections with colleague Timothy P. Manley, MSW, LCSW, Forensic Social Worker.